The present invention relates to high voltage short pulse generators and, more particularly, to a device for obtaining a relatively short high voltage pulse having a rise time essentially limited only by the rise time of the switching means.
Presently known high voltage pulse generators utilize vacuum tubes such as thyratrons or semiconductor devices such as transistors or silicon controlled rectifiers. These devices are generally incorporated in circuit arrangements which utilize an energy storage medium, such as for example, the collapsing magnetic field of an inductive device known as a fly-back transformer utilized in TV receivers, or a capacitor, or a plurality thereof, to provide the high voltage pulse. These circuit arrangements typically provide relatively slow rise times of the high voltage pulse since they are limited by the rise and fall time of the switching means (device) used to discharge and charge the energy storage medium (inductor or capacitor), as well as, the speed of the charge and discharge capability of the energy storage medium. With the state of the art of semiconductors advancing rapidly, high speed switching devices such as electron beam bombarded devices reduced switching rise times to the order of from 1-3 nano-seconds. Therefore the speed of response or the sharpness of rise and fall times of high voltage switching circuit arrangements presently known are limited by the speed of response of the energy storage medium used in conjunction with the switching device.